Employees are a key part of business success. You need them to get your company off the ground and keep it smoothly running. One of the best ways to find and retain the best talent is by showing employee appreciation. Treating your staff with respect and rewarding them when appropriate encourages engagement, productivity, and collaboration. It also increases employee morale, job satisfaction, and retention. For these reasons, you need to show employee appreciation whenever possible. Here are four ideas.
Implement Peer-to-Peer Recognition
Create a system for employees to recognize each other for contributions, achievements, and milestones. Peer recognition and camaraderie are the reason staff go the extra mile at work. Fostering appreciation, respect, and teamwork increases the cohesion of your team. Allowing peer recognition helps you learn more about the ways your team’s hard work is paying off. Your employees may use a digital recognition platform, manual gift card program, or hand-written thank-you cards. They might pass along a trophy, give an “I caught…” card stating the colleague’s name and what they contributed or accomplished, or share a colleague’s win with management. You also could set aside time at the end of the day each Friday for your team to give props during a TGIF meeting.
Feed Your Team
People enjoy eating delicious food. Feeding your team as a form of recognition brings them together for social interactions. This strengthens interpersonal relationships and collaboration while making employees feel appreciated. Bring in bagels, donuts, or muffins for breakfast. Have a pizza party or catered meal during lunch. Take your team out for lunch. Invite outstanding team members to lunch with an executive of their choice. Provide cupcakes, brownies, or an employee appreciation cake. Offer gift certificates to local coffee shops, cafes, and restaurants.
Provide Additional Vacation Days
Reward your employees with extra paid time off. Since they work hard to finish projects and reach company goals, your team members deserve additional time away from the office. They need to spend more time with family and friends, participate in hobbies, or do charity work. Your teammates can take a short vacation, engage in an activity they normally don’t have time for or do something else away from the office. This helps them rest, rejuvenate, and avoid burnout. These activities increase engagement and productivity when your team members return.
Host Company Events
Show your employees you appreciate them by planning company events. These activities show that each teammate matters and plays an important role in reaching business objectives. Plan a monthly potluck dinner, holiday gift swap, or team participation in a community event. Hold a scavenger hunt, trivia night, or office Olympics. Organize a trip to a local museum, botanical garden, or park. Sign up to tour a factory, brewery, or winery.
Outsource Payroll
Take payroll off your HR employees’ plate by outsourcing it to Red River Payroll. Free up time for your staff to focus on higher-level tasks. Contact us to learn more today.